About Nuru

Pauline Wambeti

Pauline Wambeti believes in “not waiting for other people to make the changes for us, but to make the changes ourselves.” Having invested over 15 years in community development in Kenya, Pauline is currently the Managing Director for Nuru Kenya. Prior to joining Nuru, Pauline worked for the United Nations Environment’s Regional office for Africa-Nairobi. She has been a Programme Officer for the National Organization for Peer Educators; a Business Development Officer for K-Rep Bank Ltd and, a Program Facilitator for Doctors of the World. Pauline has studied Social Work and Community Development in addition to post graduate studies in Development Studies and Project Management. She is a 2018 East Africa Acumen Fellow. 

Msingi wa uongozi wa Pauline Wambeti ni kwa falsafa ya, ‘tusingoje mabadiliko ya maendeleo kutoka kwa wengine, mbali tujibadilishe na kujiendeleza wenyewe.’ Hivi sasa Pauline ni Mkurugenzi wa Nuru Kenya, shirika lililojikita katika kumaliza umaskini uliokithiri, mashinani mwa nchi ya Kenya.  Kabla ya kujiunga na Nuru, Pauline alifanya kazi UNEP katika ofisi kuu ya Afrika jijini Nairobi. Amekuwa pia Afisa wa kuelimisha rika katika shirika la NOPE; Afisa wa Maendeleo ya Biashara katika K-Rep Bank Ltd; na Mkufunzi katika shirika la Doctors of the World-Spain. Pauline amesomea  Kazi za Kijamii; Maendeleo ya Jamii na Usimamizi wa Mradi. Pauline alishiriki katika 2018 Acumen East Africa Fellowship.  

Abiy Meshesha

Born and raised in southern Ethiopia and from a smallholder farming community, Abiy has led local and international NGOs in Ethiopia since 2004. Before joining Nuru Ethiopia on March 2018, Abiy worked as Save the Children International(SCI) Regional READ TA Project Manager in Hawassa, SCI satellite office manager in Hadelaela, EKHC DC Medan ACTS Manager in Dilla, and South Adventist Academy Vice Principal in Hawassa. In addition, he worked on short-term emergency projects with Medicins Sans Frontiers. Abiy holds an MA in Sociology and BA in Education.

Aerie Changala

Aerie has been leading Nuru as its CEO since 2020. Prior to assuming his current role, Aerie has been part of Nuru’s leadership since the organization’s earliest days. He led the design of the Nuru model and scaling for the past decade. Aerie’s passion for serving vulnerable and marginalized communities comes from his time serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer in northern Burkina Faso. Having spent the majority of his adult life living in Europe and sub-Saharan Africa, Aerie has traveled extensively, speaks five languages, and brings a truly global perspective to his work at Nuru. Aerie earned his BA in International Affairs from John Cabot University (Rome, Italy); his MA in International Conflict Analysis from University of Kent (Canterbury, UK); and completed Stanford’s University’s Graduate School of Business Executive Program for Nonprofit Leadership.

Amy Gaman

Amy has over a decade of experience in leading impact-driven teams and programs. She is passionate about ensuring sustainability and working directly with communities to develop solutions to fight poverty and bring justice for women, youth, and children in Nigeria. In addition to her role leading Nuru Nigeria since 2018, Amy serves as a ONE Champion in Nigeria Chief of Party for the Building Sustainable Livelihoods Program sponsored by USAID, and has received various awards including Adamawa State Humanitarian Ambassador of the year, recognition by the British Council through the Northeast Hub, and has been named a Perennial Fellow.

Elizabeth Atherton

Elizabeth earned her BS in Business Administration and her Masters of Accountancy at The University of Montana and holds Certified Public Accountant and Chartered Global Management Accountant licenses. She provided audit and advisory services to public companies, nonprofits, and governmental organizations at KPMG and taught auditing and pursued doctoral studies at The University of Arkansas before joining Nuru in 2013. At Nuru, she oversees the business operations and development teams as well as Nuru’s diversity initiatives. She received the InsideNGO Excellence in Finance Award in 2016 and advocates for the eradication of extreme poverty as a Congressional District Leader for the ONE Campaign.

Feven Yimer

Feven has an MA in Sociology from Indra Gandhi National Open University and a Bachelors of Education in Biology from Debube University, Dilla College of Teacher Education and Health Sciences. Prior to joining Nuru Ethiopia, Feven worked as a subject teacher at multiple schools for six years in Addis Ababa. Similarly, she has worked as an English Language instructor for Turkish nationals since 2008. Her most recent experience before joining Nuru Ethiopia is working as a business partner at Emas Advert.

George Nyamweya

George is passionate about training staff, farmers, and farmer leaders. Since high school, he was involved in student club trainings and this gave him a great zeal in skills transfer. He holds a Master’s degree in Education and International Development from the University College London and a BSc. in Disaster Mitigation with Sustainable Development from Masinde Muliro University. He also holds a teaching certificate from The American Tesol Institute. He is a member of Rift Valley Reading Association and Young African leaders Initiative Alumni, both of which are improving the capacity of leaders in Kenya. As a leadership Program Manager, he is excited when he spots staff and farmers in cooperatives applying trained skills, knowledge, and capabilities to improve their livelihoods. 

George ako na ari ya kufunza wafanyakazi, wakulima na viongozi wa wakulima. Tangu akiwa shule ya upili, alihusika katika mafunzo ya vilabu vya wanafunzi na hii ilimpa msukumo  katika kuhamasisha utekelezaji wa mafunzo. Ana shahada ya uzamili katika Ualimu na Maendeleo ya Kimataifa kutoka Chuo Kikuu cha London na shahada katika Kupunguza Maafa na Maendeleo Endelevu kutoka Chuo Kikuu cha Masinde Muliro. Yeye pia ana cheti cha ualimu kutoka Taasisi ya  Tesol Marekani. Ni mwanachama wa Chama cha Mafunzo ya Kusoma cha Bonde la ufa  na  chama cha Vijana  Viongozi wa Afrika, vyote ambavyo vinaboresha uwezo wa viongozi nchini Kenya. Kama Meneja wa kitengo cha Uongozi, anafurahi wakati anapata wafanyakazi na wakulima katika vyama vya ushirika wanatekeleza ujuzi, maarifa na uwezo kuboresha mapato yao.

Matt Lineal

Matt received his BA in Government and Spanish from Lawrence University and a MS in Forest Sciences from Colorado State University. He then began his international service career in rural Honduras, first as a Peace Corps Volunteer and later with The Nature Conservancy. Over several years punctuated by severe challenges for Hondurans, his experiences were eye opening as to how people navigate the complexities of rural life. Matt was drawn to Nuru International in 2011 with the resolve to take on tough challenges and has been humbled and amazed to be part of the transformational impact of local leaders. As Nuru’s Chief Program Officer, Matt continues to promote the agency of rural communities as the foundation of meaningful positive change. 

Simon Eli

Simon holds a B. Tech in Urban and Regional Planning as well as an M. Tech in infrastructure along with several certifications in program design and project management. Simon joined the fight to end extreme poverty after several years of being a tutor in higher institutions, he believes knowledge creates wealth. After experience living as a refugee in northern Cameroon during the time when his home community was part of Boko Haram’s caliphate, Simon is passionate about providing the people of northeastern Nigeria opportunities for hope and meaningful choices. 

Tom Kibet